Twisted Well
An Inu-Yasha / Sorcerer Hunters fan fiction by Iapetus
Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi owns Inu-Yasha and Sartoru Akahori and Rei Omishi own the Sorcerer Hunters. I am getting no profit off these stories, so don't sue me.
*********First of all, sorry for the mess-up with this chapter. I REALLY didn't mean for the chapter to end up that short, it was my own error. Please look at this chapter again… Now onto your regularly scheduled author's note…*********
Author's note: Sorry for the delay, I've been busy with life recently. I went on a missions trip to Kentucky to help remodel houses. No this wasn't Habitiat for Humanity, it was through my church and some other churches from my denomination. That means that the whole week I didn't have access to a computer, much less the internet. Still, I hope you enjoy this short chapter.
FF.net was having problems with the server, and as a result… I was unable to post these chapters when they were done. Chapter 9 should have been up on June 17. I STILL think there is some conspiracy against me getting chapter 9 up. Well, I hope you enjoyed it.
Can you believe it? I actually got into double-digits! When I started to write my story, I had no idea how long it would last. But as I said before, stories take on a life of their own, and I just sit along for the ride. It isn't like my chapter lengths are that shabby either; each one is (more or less) eight computer pages, 12 pt Times New Roman single-spaced. I've seen chapters a LOT shorter here on FF.net, so I think I'm doing good.
Anyways, remember to review! I can use all the help I can get!
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Chapter ten: The Way Things Are
"Where do you suppose Mille and Cranberry went?" Éclair asked the group. They had stopped for the night in a natural clearing. Mirkou had propositioned Éclair a couple of minutes ago, but Gateau gave him a look that told him that it wouldn't be a good idea to do so. Taking the warning from the older brother, he suddenly declared he would be making dinner. All the girls sighed in relief; the whole trip they had been hit upon by either Carrot or Mirkou. None of them were used to handling with two perverts, so they were worn out.
Carrot had seemly stopped his pursuit of their new "foreign" companions when Inu-Yasha smacked him upside the head for hitting on Kagome. Now, it looked like he had something different on his mind. Rummaging through his bag, he pulled out a huge deck of cards.
At the sight of the cards, Marron and Tira rolled their eyes. Gateau laughed, and Chocolat seemed to get excited.
What the heck… thought Éclair. She rose from the ground to get a better look at it. It was a Five-Star deck, and a large one at that. She estimated by its size that it about five ordinary decks within it. It wasn't a surprise then, that he was so excited. Five-Star was the most popular card game in Spooner. Everyone who was able to would play it – it was addicting. In fact, she and Gateau used to play it all the time with their parents.
Kagome seemed interested in the cards, but the rest of her companions didn't really know what was going on. Inu-Yasha was up in a tree, resting as he usually did. Sango was cleaning her bone boomerang, and Shippo was floating around as a balloon still.
"What's that?" asked the fox demon. He turned back into his normal form, and ran to investigate the curious new object.
"What, you don't have Five-Star where you come from?" Carrot asked in shock.
Mirkou, Sango, and Shippo shook their heads. Inu-Yasha didn't respond.
"Do you have ANY card games where you come from?" Chocolat inquired.
Again, the same response. Although, Kagome was looking at the deck with great interest.
"THEY don't have card games, but I do. Still, there's no such game as Five-Star on my world…
"This reminds me of a poker deck, but the numbers go up to fifteen. There's no jacks, queens or kings either."
"What are those?" Carrot asked. They had grown up in a world where an Emperor ruled the land. There were no royalty of that sort.
"Never mind. Who are on the face cards?" Kagome said quickly. She was unfamiliar with their political system, so she wasn't sure how'd she explain it.
"Well, the lowest of the face cards is the Vassal. They're a low-level Sorcerer." Kagome nodded, and Chocolat continued.
"Second is the a Lord. They are the only nobility on Spooner that do not have Sorcerer blood in them." Mirkou had left his stew (which was simmering) to come and look at the cards with his friends.
"Third is the Count. They are the high level Sorcerers which we are usually asked to hunt down." There was an awkward silence as Carrot set the card down. This time, he continued.
"Normally, the highest card is the Emperor. An extravantly dressed man sat atop a throne. "The next card is optional, and it is sometimes called the wild." He held up a card with the picture of a gorgeous woman. "She is known as the Princess. Either she is wild, or is played between the Count and Emperor." Kagome nodded, but the rest of her companions looked confused.
"Lastly," Chocolat took over, "is the most important card of all – the Star card. It is the lowest in point value, but necessary if you want to win the game."
"You two haven't even told what the suits were yet!" Tira rolled her eyes. This won't make sense with the huge deck if you don't explain about the suits!" Walking over, she pulled out five separate cards.
"In Five-Star, there are five different suits. Each one had their own set of numbers, and their own monarchy (face cards). The first suit is armor. See how it is black? That's how you can tell what it is. Each suit has it's own color, and all the lettering and outlines of the pictures are done in that color. Second is Spires, and its color is silver. Third is Tears, and because it comes from water, it is light blue. Fourth is Roses, and the color is a deep red. Lastly is Fire, and the color is a yellowish orange."
Something clicked in Shippo's head. "Hey Kagome, isn't this like that thing you always carried in your bag?"
"What, you mean MY deck of cards? That was a poker deck. This game looks a LOT more complicated than any of the games I've played with my own."
"Still, it is making more sense now…" Mirkou pondered. "I remember seeing you play a game by yourself before."
"Not only that, but some of the people at that school of yours was playing with one," Inu-Yasha said for the first time.
"Would you like to learn how to play?" Carrot quickly asked Kagome and her friends.
"Sure…" Kagome said with a bit of uncertainty.
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She hated the act, all of it. Yet, she couldn't let her Hunters, or even her Knights, know she was nervous. Big things were happening in Spooner - things that would change their world as they knew it.
And, somehow, it all came back to the Citrus Valley. The Rubicon family held the whole empire in fear when they were at the height of their power. Now, the same thing was happening with the family she had trusted for generations. Power corrupts, but the current Count Pepper could never turn so fast. This sudden transformation puzzled her, and she could see how Maye would be so upset. It also didn't help that she had a terrible feeling that she was sending some of her best Hunters into the Lion's Mouth.
Not only that, but Daughter's been having nightmares. She couldn't remember them, and they were infrequent, but Momma feared it might be a prerogative dream. So many things were out of her control, and she had no idea how to help…
The people from the other world bothered Big Momma's conscience. It wasn't that they were rude – well, that one demon was – but have how they came into her world in the first place. She had never heard of "Japan" before, and all of their clothing was unfamiliar to any part of Spooner. Still, she thought that there had to be something about it in the archives. If there were an answer to this problem, it would be there.
Daughter looked tired, and she hated to send her out again, but everyone had to work hard in desperate times. Maybe she'd let her adopted child spend the night in the village. Then again, she thought with dismay, there's a chance something will come up.
"Daughter?" she asked sweetly.
"Yes, Momma?" the winged girl replied, rubbing her eyes.
"I'm sorry to do this, but I need you to go to the secret village. I must talk to Grandpa and Onion."
"I understand, Momma," she responded, yawning the whole time.
"Momma?" she asked.
"Yes?"
"Is the situation really bad?"
The deity gravely nodded her head.
"Are you going to be ok, Daughter?" she asked, concerned.
"Of course," the girl forced a smile. "It's important, so I'll always be ok!" With a smile, and her usual demeanor, Daughter disappeared in a cloud of pink smoke.
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Onion had just gotten back from a hard day of work. Usually, as resident Haz Knight, he wasn't consulted unless the situation was unable to be taken care of by the other resident Hunters. Today had been one of those days.
A particularly nasty sorcerer, Gren Berrien, was out on a hunting day with some of his fellow sorcerer friends. They had wanted to hunt up the mountain, but the traps had not worked on them. Trying to keep the man and his friends away, the Hunters had tried to make the mountain look like a natural disaster area. Still, they wouldn't give up.
Finally, as they were within ten minutes of seeing the village, he had shown up. A couple swings of his axes at some cliffs made the Sorcerer's change their minds about their hunting destination. Onion Glase wasn't a Haz Knight for show.
The only reason Gren Berrien hasn't been hunted yet is because he's too weak to do anything to a parsoner. Hunters hated him because of his attitude towards others, and that's why he was so unpopular. Still, he was a stubborn old goat…
Looking at his fire mantle, he smiled at what lie there. It was several pictures of him and his family. Off to the side, there was a picture of Carrot holding Marron as a baby. Next to it was a picture taken just before they started taking care of the Misu sisters.
On the other side was a picture of him and his wife Apricot, as normal hunters. Next to that was their wedding picture, and after that was a picture of him holding a baby Carrot.
In the center was his favorite picture of all. It had been taken one week before Apricot… well, he didn't like to think about that. Either way, all of them were there. Carrot was about 14, and so was Chocolat. Marron was 11, and Tira was 10. All of them were smiling, enjoying the day. He thought about where they were at that moment, and what was about to happen to them.
Momma had told him a short while ago that his two sons and adoptive daughters were heading towards Citrus Valley. He had remembered when Count Red was killed so long ago… and how one of his best friends was born from him. Cranberry was accompanying them to the Valley, but he couldn't help but feel anxiety towards their welfare. Contrary to popular belief, he really did love Carrot and Marron equally. And yes, while Tira and Chocolat had become VERY nice on the eyes, he worried about them too. He didn't doubt their skill, but Fatherly instinct kicks in at the most frustrating of times.
"I always knew you were a softie at heart."
Onion spun around, but saw that it was only Grandpa. Why I'm not used to that already, I'll never know, he thought. Grandpa had a habit of surprising people when he came to see them. Since Onion had absent-mindedly left the door open, it made the old man's job easier.
"What makes you say that?" the father of two asked.
The old man just smiled that knowing smile which drove everyone in the Secret Village crazy.
"Hello!" the buxom girl called out from the door. She held the orb in her hand. Instantly, his house disappeared as Onion and Grandpa were pulled into the illusionary world of the orb.
Seeing the deity, Onion immediately bowed. Grandpa just stood there in quiet contemplation.
"Rise, Onion," as he stood up, he noticed another person standing next to Big Momma. It was his fellow knight, Cinnamon Tea.
Known for the fastest moves in the universe, Cinnamon's skills were often used on missions that had to be resolved quickly. No one could match her when she fought as a Haz Knight.
"Heeelllllloooo, Ooonnniiioooonn! Hoooowwww arrrrrrrre yooouuuuu?" she asked politely. Unfortunately for other people, her fighting speed came at a price. When she was not engaged in combat, everything had to be done slowly - even talking. Onion sighed inwardly. He knew if Carrot ever met her, he'd probably die of impatience. He couldn't imagine how it was for Mille, Cranberry, and Basil to be with her all the time. Their new mission, in a way, was kind of a relief, he thought. Well, no time to ponder about that; it was time for business.
Big Momma told them of the current situation, and of the new visitors. "I have a feeling that something like this has happened before, but cannot remember when or how. It is possible that something similar has been recorded in the archives, and that is why I came to you.
"First, though, how was the hunt for information surrounding the Shikon Jewel?"
"Well…" Onion looked to Grandpa to make sure it was ok to tell Mama what he was about to say. He nodded. "In an ancient text, one that both of us believe was written before you were born (here he gave a slight bow) references an ancient time when there were thousands of religions in the world. The Shikon Jewel's name comes from the Shinto religion, and refers to having a soul in balance. Apparently, to this religion, every creature has four aspects to their soul, although it doesn't go into further depth."
"Most of the ancient texts are too illegible for anyone to read. We were lucky to dephiper what we could," Grandpa pointed out.
"Well, as I said before, a monk had come with the other-worlders. Although, I don't think he said that Shinto was his religion. It was something else, but I don't remember what.
"We should just ask him! I'm sure he'll know the answer!" Momma laughed. Her carefree appearance always shocked those who knew her. She was always concerned for others, but her acting made her look like a ditz.
"Either way, they don't know how they got here. I'm thinking that his has happened somehow before, so I want Cinnamon Tea to help you research." Here, the girl stepped forward, slowly. "I have a feeling that Cinnamon's skills would be more useful here, while the other Knights help my children."
Onion fixed a smile on his face. Cinnamon was great, but she could be annoying. He didn't know what Momma had meant, because she was slow ninety percent of the time.
"Good Luck, you three," she smiled. "I'm sure you'll find an answer in the archives." Then she disappeared as suddenly as she appeared.
"We'll start first thing tomorrow morning," Grandpa stated. "Right now, I think we could all use our rest…"
Onion was glad to have them leave his house. He now had peace and quiet. Yesterday was tiring, today was stressful, and tomorrow is going to be frustrating, he thought. I'm going to get all the rest I can get…
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"Was that girl the client?" Cranberry asked. Basil nodded an affirmative.
"No wonder Momma seemed so mysterious then," Mille laughed. "I knew it."
The youngest Haz Knight jumped down from his tree perch. "What?" he wondered, "Did Momma not tell who the client was?"
"Exactly. It is one reason we came to talk to you," Cranberry pointed out. "We think Momma wants the girl to prove herself in front of the others first. Who is she, exactly, by the way?"
Basil smiled. They are going to get a surprise out of this, he thought. "Maye Juune."
"What?" the other two knights asked in shock. He had been right.
"Momma said the heir to the Juune family sent an informant. Did her own father send her on such an important journey?" Cranberry wondered.
"No, Cranberry, her father didn't send her," he paused, "She came herself."
"I thought she was the fifth child in the family."
"She is. The rest of her family is no longer of this world."
The two men were too stunned to speak. Basil continued.
"Apparently, there was a terrible plague in the cities of Lemon and Orange. Almost everyone died, including her whole family – except her cousin.
"Her story can wait. I think she should tell it herself. What I want to know is, why does Momma want to keep this a secret from the others?"
"Well, while we know that a female fighter shouldn't be underestimated, I don't think they're going to think the same way about the daughter of a Lord. Momma wants Maye to prove herself before they discover her title," Mille reasoned.
"Especially since Lady Guacamole had a reputation of not wanting her daughters to be trained as fighters," Cranberry put in.
"They're going to know as soon as they meet her that she is a fighter," Mille noted, "A person's chi doesn't lie."
"Still, I can see Momma's reasoning," Basil noted. "Maye isn't going to like having to lie to everyone. You don't realize how high she holds all of us. She came believing in a legend, and asked for only one hunter. Now, she is going to get nine."
"Actually a bit more than nine…" Cranberry put in.
"…More?" Basil said astonished.
"Yes. Do you know how my original mission with Éclair was to discover the reason for the power fluctuations in a dry well not far from here?" Cranberry inquired.
"Momma mentioned it before…"
"Well, it turns out it was a portal to another world."
"What?"
"Five people came through it when we got there. They were looking for the jewel shards," Mille observed. "And, two of them were demons."
Basil said nothing, but took all the information in. He nodded for them to continue.
"Apparently, the Shikon shards come from their world-"
"Four souls?" Basil asked.
"Apparently it has a connection with a religion in their world. I was planning on asking the monk about it," Mille put in.
"Monk?" the young knight asked again, confused.
"One of the people from the other world is a monk from some unknown religion," Cranberry explained.
"Anyways, apparently it used to be a whole jewel, but it was shattered by another one of the people from the Well. They have been gathering pieces for awhile, and have a sizeable chunk."
"So that's why the power was so large there," Basil realized. "But still, what does this have to do with Maye?"
"These other-worldly guests are coming with us," Mille finally stated. "They have experience with the jewel, and we have experience with Sorcerers. Neither group could do well against Count Pepper alone."
Basil laughed. His fellow companions could not see the humor in their grave situation, and asked him about his response.
"It's just that… Maye holds the Sorcerer Hunters in the highest esteem. She believes we are messengers, and saviors, of God."
"Well, in a way we are," Cranberry commented.
"Yes, I know. But, she humbly asked for only one. Big Momma gives her nine. And now, she gets more."
"What, man, do you expect ONE hunter to be enough?" Mille laughed now. "If we only sent one hunter in, they'd be dead in a minute. I don't need Marron's cards to predict that."
"If Maye can prove herself, what do you think about bringing her along when we face the Count?" Basil asked.
"I don't think her people should be separated from her for a long time. She sounds like a good leader, and they need one in their hard times. Yet, she knows the Valley and Pepper better than us all." Cranberry tried to hide the anguish on his face. Again, problems were occurring in the Citrus Valley. Again, it was because of a Sorcerer. And now, he was heading into the heart of the storm – for the heir of the Rubicon family was returning to his roots. It was common knowledge that many Rubicons still lived in the Sorcerer's house. Many of them were probably just biding their time until they could take control again. He didn't like the feeling he had in the bottom of his stomach – not one little bit.
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Author's Note: Ok, sorry that this chapter is a tad short. Not to mention, I needed to explain some stuff before the next chapter.
Revisions: Chapter one had one major revision, and if you want to read the part over, you should go back to it and check. As I said before, stories take on minds of their own. I didn't originally plan on Maye being nobility, but the story made her that way. To make a long story short, I revised Maye's escape from Lemon to agree with the later chapters.
Keep on reviewing! They really encourage me to keep writing!
-Iapetus
